2017 Winner

Tatham’s work sets out to examine how sub-state entities (SSE’s) in Europe interact with the nation-states to which they belong when lobbying at European Union level. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, he explores this question by way of a comparative case study approach. The book’s mixed methods model and – in the words of one of our judges – its ‘impeccable comparative logic’, consistently bolster its line of argument. Tatham concludes that regional actors tend either toward cooperation or non-interaction vis-à-vis their national governments when engaging with Brussels.

Our judges were unanimous in their assessment of the book’s clarity of writing, strength of argument, and methodological rigour. They were equally concurrent on this being a timely and valuable contribution to the discipline of European Studies and beyond.